


Six Billion People, Six Billion Souls

by gaialux



Category: Oz (TV)
Genre: Drabble Collection, Monologue, Multi, Stream of Consciousness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-01
Updated: 2012-12-01
Packaged: 2017-11-19 23:00:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/578555
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gaialux/pseuds/gaialux
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Drabbles. "At this moment there are 6,470,818,671 people in the world. Some are running scared. Some are coming home. Some tell lies to make it through the day. Others are just not facing the truth. Some are evil men, at war with good. And some are good, struggling with evil. Six billion people in the world, six billion souls. And, sometimes, all you need, is one." - One Tree Hill.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Six Billion People, Six Billion Souls

**Author's Note:**

> A series of drabbles taken inspired by the One Tree Hill monologue.
> 
> Oz does not belong to me. This piece of fiction was written for entertainment purposes only, no profit is gained.

  
**I.** _"At this moment, there are 6,470,818,671 people in the world."_  


Everybody has evacuated Oswald State Correctional Facility. For the first time in years, there is silence coming from its walls.

Wait. Is that a sound?

Is it the buzz of a gate being opened? Or is it the water from the showers hitting cement floor? Maybe it is the sound of people fighting.

Why be so pessimistic? Do you not remember when people could grasp a friendship? When love spoke between the walls?

People were once here. In cells of metal or plastic. They existed, they survived. More than that – they _lived_. Hundreds of people. They once lived in Oz.

**oOo**

  
**_II._ ** _"Some are running scared."_  


I never fit in anywhere. This world had rejected me long ago. I attack people, myself, the world, the ghosts, the visions, the spirits, the past, the future. I attack everything to make it hit me back. To make it take me back and assure me that I have a place somewhere in here.

I thought that escape would do it. It was so wrong. In only a couple of years, the outside world had grown so much bigger. My heart had dropped when I realised there was even less of a chance for me to fit in out here.

**oOo**

  
**III.** _"Some are coming home."_  


When Chris returned, I didn't know what to expect. I wanted to hate him. I wanted to hurt him like he hurt me. But the moment his steal blue eyes had settled on mine, the hate evaporated. I had to put a façade to stop myself from jumping him right then and there. I had to hide my feelings so I could try and protect that little bit of dignity and self-esteem I had left. Then, New Year's. With Chris right there, I knew that any further attempts to avoid my feelings would be a lost cause. I loved him.

**oOo**

  
**IV.** _"Some tell lies to make it through the day."_  


How often did the word "love" pass through the lips of men in Oz? Love, it was the biggest lie amongst humans, especially cons. In prison, a promise to be somebodies bitch might eventually turn into a false love. If you could convince someone they were worth more than their ass, you had them for life. The little lie everybody always fell for. Didn't matter if you were black, white, gay, straight, rich, poor, a murderer, or a petty thief. You told people you loved them, and believed it when they told you the words in turn.

You're all liars.

**oOo**

  
**V.** _"Others are just not facing the truth."_  


"I am worthless. As bad as they come and to have someone keep loving me, no matter how bad..." Chris had to stop, the lines of lies and truth now blending as he conversed with Sister Peter Marie.

He couldn't really believe himself to be worthless. Chris was cunning, strong, manipulative, and able to succeed in anything he set his mind on because he was just _that good –_ just that _skilled_. Fuck – Toby was his perfect example. How well he could make Toby love him, hate him, and love him again not matter what happened. Chris was worth it all.

**oOo**

  
**VI.** _"Some are evil men, at war with good."_  


When Vern had placed his granddaughter into his hands, he had not expected to feel what he did. All of that hatred in his heart had faded away with the view of Jewel's innocent face. He rocked her gently, remembering back to happier times when he was married and each of his sons had been born; the happiest days of his life. Everything was so different now; both of them were gone. But, for this moment, he could just pretend. Pretend he was in a hospital room, holding Hank or Andrew in his arms, back when the Schillinger's were free.

**oOo**

  
**VII.** _"And some are good, struggling with evil."_  


The Qur'an tells me of so many things which, while I will not admit to others, compromise some morals I have always held dear. It holds some beliefs of great good – to protect, to serve, to be loyal, to love, to not harm. Yet it is the last which I find myself battling with daily.

Inside the setting of a prison, so much evil manifests itself daily. So much racism and prejudice and hatred are a part of my everyday life. I just sit and wait for myself to snap, and the full wrath of my fury to become unleashed.

**oOo**

  
**VIII.** _"Six billion people in the world, six billion souls."_  


If there are six billion people in the world, how many of those have walked through the walls of Oz? Not just as prisoners, but as visitors, correctional officers, doctors, nurses, lawyers, wardens, unit managers...the list of possibilities goes on.

The judgement a person can pass on a prisoner is absurd when you consider just how many people are locked away in here each and every day. And, for those of you who are not so _privileged_ as to exist within the walls, consider how free you yourself really are.

Not all walls of captivity are made of metal bars.

**oOo**

  
**IX.** _"And, sometimes, all you need, is one."_  


In Oz, everybody needs someone. Without someone, you will wither and die. Everybody needs someone to protect them, to teach them, to listen to them, to _love_ them. Without it, we cannot be people. We can't thrive and grow.

Sometimes in Oz, you remain static. Until that one person appears and lifts you from this reverie and makes you feel what you never have before. Sometimes, it takes a prison to break you and then pull you back to your feet. A kindred spirit, if you will, to find and understand you. Then, you can be free.

_Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, Too-ra-loo-ra-li ..._

**Author's Note:**

> 'Toora Loora Loora' lyrics do not belong to me. Chris Keller's dialogue is taken directly from an episode of Oz.


End file.
